3.98 cGPA/3.99 sGPA, 90-100% MCAT 2015 - please help!

[bonjour13]

I am a slightly unusual case because I began considering medicine halfway through college, during the summer before my junior year (I just graduated with the Class of 2015). I began taking the main prerequisites and looking for clinical experiences that fall, and completed the prerequisites this spring (hence the late MCAT). Because I got such a late start, I have felt a little lost in the process and have less experience than many applicants who had 4 years to gain shadowing hours, etc. I don't know whether admissions committees will take this into consideration.

-Major in Philosophy and Minor in French from a prestigious public school
-State of residence: VA
-cGPA: 3.98
-Science GPA: 3.99
-MCAT: 519 overall (98%) - 129 Chem/Phys, 132 CARS, 130 Bio/Biochem, 128 Psych/Soc

Clinical Experience:
-New gap year job as ED scribe (unfortunately did not get to talk about this in my application)
-51 hours free clinic volunteering
-22 hours shadowing (ED, pediatrics, and family medicine)
-20 hours rural health center volunteering
-University of Colorado Pre-Med Emergency and Wilderness Medicine Program, inaugural class
-Mentoring relationship with pediatric nephrologist
-Informational interview with psychiatrist
-In high school I volunteered for hundreds of hours over the course of three summers at a camp for children with special medical needs. I did not discuss this on AMCAS because it happened in high school, but I may write about it in secondaries if it is relevant).

ECs and other significant experiences:
-Independent study in philosophy
-Job as barista $
kitchen staff at local coffee shop for 2 summers
-Studied abroad at a French university for a semester
-Heavily involved in my school's Catholic student group as Community Service Coordinator, Evening Retreat Coordinator, service trip team member, Freshman Small Group Leader
-Served as 1 of 3 student representatives on my school's Educational Policy Committee for 2 years (reviewed and voted on changes to the school's curriculum and courses)
-Involved in many activities geared toward new student outreach (freshman move-in team, conversation partner for incoming international student, peer advisor for a summer)
-Helped organize a conference at my school that brought a psychiatrist/professor at Duke Med to talk about the issue of mental illness on college campuses

I have already submitted my AMCAS application to the following schools:

1. UVA
2. VCU
3. EVMS
4. Georgetown
5. USC - Keck
6. Stanford
7. Harvard
8. Vanderbilt
9. Mount Sinai
10. Washington University in St. Louis
11. Loma Linda
12. Loyola
13. Baylor

How does this list look? I would like to add a few more schools, as well.
Overall, am I a competitive applicant? My numbers are good, but I feel my limited clinical and research experience will be a turnoff.
Any help will be appreciated!

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[bonjour13]

Also, do you think I have a shot at UCSD in particular?

 

[Banco]

Wait until you get your final scores before making a list this top heavy - ideally you want 518+ (97%) for a list like this. Lack of research isn't lethal for these top tier schools, but it will hurt a bit.

 

[GrapesofRath]

Wait until you get your final scores before making a list this top heavy - ideally you want 518+ (97%) for a list like this. Lack of research isn't lethal for these top tier schools, but it will hurt a bit.

For schools like WASHU Harvard and Stanford it is pretty close to lethal. If you are one of the 5% in the class who doesn't have research experience you better have something pretty damn compelling to make up for it. Stats that are the norm at these schools won't suffice for "making up for it".

The clinical exposure is on the light side but if you made it clear you are spending time now and the next year as a scribe that should be ok. You can still go ahead and apply to a couple of these research powerhouses but I would set my expectations more realistically than what your list is even if you end up with a 97th+ percentile score.

Regardless, if you're going to apply to some research powerhouse type schools the Mt. Sinai/NYU tier is probably a smarter better than the WASHU/Harvard tier for you(although like I said if you wanna throw an app or two at the WASHU/JHU types and see what happens go ahead).

 

[Goro]

Your anemic clinical volunteering will hurt, and the lack of research will kill you for the research powerhouses.

Because of the wide range of percentiles, I am being conservative with my recommendations:


U VM
Miami
St. Louis
Albany
Rush
Rosy Franklin
NYMC
VCU
EVMS
Wake Forest
Jefferson
Temple
Drexel
Creighton
George Washington
Tulane
Loyola
Creighton
Any new MD school. Skip Central MI and the three new FL schools.
U Va (maybe)
Any DO program, starting with VCOM. I can't recommend LUCOM

 

[GrapesofRath]

This is a great example of an application that would be helped tremendously by waiting another year before applying.

 

[bonjour13]

Oh, man, this hurts, guys. I do have research experience in philosophy. Will that count at all?

 

[GrapesofRath]

Oh, man, this hurts, guys. I do have research experience in philosophy. Will that count at all?

Not for the medical research powerhouses you are interested in. Like I said if you wait a year and get involved with a clinical research project on the side of working as a scribe and adding up some more volunteer hours, a year from now you'll be in much better shape to try and take a stab at these big name schools.

As is though, there too many examples of applicants like you over the years who have alot more problems with admission in general than they expect, and not just at top schools necessairly. That's why there is so much caution being expressed here.

It's also perfectly fine to apply right now as is; Goro recommended some pretty good schools as is and your in a position where you might be able to apply to OOS public schools that usually favor the home team due to your stats.

 

[Banco]

Oh, man, this hurts, guys. I do have research experience in philosophy. Will that count at all?

No need to get discouraged. The fact of the matter is that top schools are simply highly competitive, so you want to have the strongest application you can when you apply to them (if that's what you're aiming for). Your application overall is perfectly good for an MD school though, and depending on your MCAT even for some top schools.

There are people who get into research powerhouses without any science research experience, but they are the exceptions and have something else going for them usually (for example: athletes).

 

[bonjour13]

Thanks, guys! I did apply to many, many research assistant jobs, but without success due to my lack of experience. Do you have any tips on getting into a research lab without experience?

 

[GrapesofRath]

Thanks, guys! I did apply to many, many research assistant jobs, but without success due to my lack of experience. Do you have any tips on getting into a research lab without experience?

Do it as a volunteer. Basic research if you are working as a scribe already probably isn't going to be too fruitful. Look into clinical research projects. With the right project preparing a manuscript within the next year is possible.

 

[bonjour13]

Suppose I do end up getting above 97% on the MCAT. How should that influence which schools I add to my list? Should I still stick to lower-tier schools, or can I add more top 20-30ish schools?

 

[Banco]

Suppose I do end up getting above 97% on the MCAT. How should that influence which schools I add to my list? Should I still stick to lower-tier schools, or can I add more top 20-30ish schools?

You should add some reaches if your MCAT comes out that high. Just be sure to have some realistic options as well.

 

[bonjour13]

Do you think I don't currently have enough realistic options? (Loma linda, Loyola, VCU, EVMS, Georgetown, uva)

 

[Banco]

Do you think I don't currently have enough realistic options? (Loma linda, Loyola, VCU, EVMS, Georgetown, uva)

Those are pretty good yeah. Maybe a couple more would be better: Einstein, SLU, Miami, Vermont etc.

Overall apply to 15-20 schools at least.

 

[bonjour13]

The jury is in and here is my MCAT breakdown:

Overall: 519 (98%)
Chem/Phys: 129
CARS: 132
Bio/Biochem: 130
Psych/Soc: 128

Any thoughts?

 

[Banco]

Awesome score. Still, apply to 15-20 schools, since your current list has a lot of big names that like research. Add some more mid-tiers.

 

[Nietzschelover]

bonjour13, some of this strikes me as laughable. You're getting fellow applicants acting like senior consultants telling you what you may or may not do. The tones in the languaging are really rich. And the list offered to you in truth is hardly a bit different than one that would be offered to a 3.6, 30-31 MCAT applicant.

Reading some of these WAMCs I get the impression that there are cutter-cookie targets (re: # of hours of volunteering, research, etc) being projected onto some imagined prism of the ideal applicant. You're all unique. We're always hearing that med schools love combinations like majoring in philosophy along with fulfilling the pre-med reqs. A 4.0 in philosophy at a top school is no joke. Neither is a 4.0 science gpa. Or a 98% MCAT. There is so much energy focused on deficiencies on this site, often realistically so, but the trend goes too far. Be genuine with your story. Embrace your story. There may be some truth regarding the very top research powerhouses but you don't low or even mid-tier stats. Protect yourself but go for what you want. Just based on the little you shared above you're already going to be one of the more interesting persons in whatever med school class you end up at.

Someone who has a 4.0, with a 98% MCAT, evidence of service and challenging him/herself, and a unique and dynamic academic profile/background should have to apologize a bit. You are to be congratulated. You have done more than enough to be a completely legit high end med school candidate right now. The notion that your application screams for another year of waiting is preposterously and presumptively insulting.

 

[Banco]

@Nietzschelover I agree he is not a marginal applicant by any means and can afford to apply to top schools, but since 8/13 schools on his original list are very competitive it helps to have some reassurance on the back end.

OP I think your shot for UVa is pretty good; I know you asked about UCSD and I think it is worth applying there as well.